#39 I’m a failure!

I tried, I really did, but to write a review of each round of the Vitality Netball Superleague was just beyond me! There’s been too many young stars emerging, too many umpiring calls to talk about and too many ‘comebacks’ that have just been unbelievably inspiring! 

The excitement has also got the better of me! I’ve been writing coaching notes on each match, tweeting my little heart out (@netballcoachnow) & enthusiastically encouraging my netball community to get watching. Frankly, I’m exhausted and writing match reports may well send me over the edge! 

We’ve come to a natural break with no Superleague matches this weekend though, so thought now was a good time to pause, take a break and put some of my thoughts down on paper. 

So here goes........

Let’s first talk about the emerging talent we’ve seen! From Sophie Kelly’s immediate impact for Storm to Alice Harvey’s amazing consistency for Lightning. The EN pathway seems to be bursting with talent & it’s incredible we get to see these players at the beginning of their careers! 

Regular readers will know I have a long term worry about what happens when England LEGEND Geva retires. It keeps me awake at night! 

I needn’t! It’s covered! 😉

There have been some stand out performances from stalwart players too. Lightning’s Mary Chalhok is in incredible form, the transformation from 3 years ago is amazing (check out YouTube!) 

Sophie Drakeford -Lewis really impressed in the England Roses tour to New Zealand at the end of last year. She has started the Superleague where she left off in NZ! 

Her partnership with Kim Borger is already reaping benefits and is only going to get better. I am loving seeing them play! 

Controversially perhaps, I’ve been disappointed with the import players so far this season - at least those who arrived with some fanfare! 

Maybe, Jamaican shooters Rebekah Robinson & Gezelle Allison need a bit longer to ‘bed in’ to their respective teams. I thought the SA attacking line up of Sigi Burger & Lefebre Rademan would smash up the court for Pulse but again it might be more of a slow burn! 

In comparison, those who arrived in the Vitality Superleague more quietly have made their mark! 

Storm defender Leah Middleton has particularly impressed for me. Her work rate both on & off the ball is phenomenal & you can see, as each game passes, she looks a bit more comfortable & is adjusting to the UK umpires! Her partnership with Alima Priest is also going to bear more fruit as the season progresses. 

Malawian Towera Vinkhumbo is also stamping her authority on the Superleague court. Sirens have picked up a great signing at GK and again she will only get better as the season progresses. 

Has Sirens been the ‘surprise’ package of the season? They’ve unfortunately picked up a number of injuries but just go about their business quietly & in a really efficient way. They’re young shooting circle of Emma Barrie & Beth Goodwin weren’t the starting shooting combo but have stepped up big time, seemingly running rings around defenders with far more experience. That is a partnership that is going places in the future! 

Could Sirens secret weapon not be on court at all?! Karen Atkinson is match day coach for the side & I just have a feeling that is making all the difference to their confidence. After all, what an inspiration & fountain of knowledge to have next to you! 

Atkinson’s former team Loughborough Lightning are also going great guns in 2021. A great mix of youth and experience, Coach Sara Bayman has got them playing some first class netball. Their mid court of Joseph, Pannagary & Cobden is among the slickest in the league.  

For me, the ones to beat are still Team Bath. I tipped them for the title ( see previous blog) before the league began and on paper, at least, they have superior strength in depth. I’ve seen nothing on court to make me change my mind! If anything, they might be a little further along than I thought! 

Bath play Thunder when the action returns and that is going to be one game not to miss! 

What am I saying? I haven’t missed any this season and not likely to either! Happy netball watching! 

#38 Super League Predictions

Apologies for another pre Super League 2021 blog! I am so bloomin’ excited! 

Thought I’d give my crystal ball 🔮 a dust off and see what we can come up with in terms of predictions, for the new season. Long term readers will know this isn’t a strength of mine, but we’ll have a bit of fun with it nevertheless! 

Controversy: Netball is, thankfully, not known for football- like ‘dust ups’ and long may that continue! With such a bright light being shone on every single game though (woop!) there is bound to be something that goes from molehill to mountain in 60 seconds. 

We’ve already had Franchise Managers ‘banned’ court side and tweeting their disappointment at the decision, which I believe has since been overturned! (The tweet has also, since, been deleted!) 

Whether it’s a misbehaving player, coaching decision or umpiring mistake, in current times it will be very easy for the little things to become escalated! We all have an opinion & with social media as it is, those opinions are easily shared! 

Upsets

Think Severn Stars beating Wasps in the ill-fated 2020 season. There’s always a giant killing or surprise result somewhere and they’re normally, in netball anyway, a close and exciting spectacle! 

So, who are we going for: Storm beating Thunder by 1 or Sirens coming from behind to take the victory against Team Bath? How many ‘upsets’ will there be? 

Injury

Unfortunately, elite sport can be cruel. There’s bound to be a season ending injury like an ACL or Achilles tear. 

Some of the fixtures don’t offer a lot of recovery time ( I am sure this would have been taken into consideration along with a whole heap of other factors getting this league up and running) but that could have an impact on bodies. 

Fingers crossed, with Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, just around the corner, it’s not one of our home grown athletes. 

Spectators

Maybe this is more of a Hope than a prediction! 

The season is played over 4 months with the semi finals and final scheduled for the Copperbox on the weekend of the 26th & 27th June. If everything goes to plan (everything crossed!) you’d think and hope that by then the world would have some resemblance of ‘normal’ about it and we might even have fans allowed in! 

I’m first in the queue!🤞 

Winners 

There are a lot of unknowns to the 2021 Super League season. We haven’t seen any of the teams or players for nearly a year and we have a brand new franchise entering the fray - which, for me, doubles the excitement! 

It makes informed predictions on who might win even more difficult! 

I am going to take a punt on Team Bath though. They have really exciting players, from hugely experienced Roses Captain Serena Guthrie to the emerging talent of GA Sophie Drakeford-Lewis. 

I think it’s fair to say Team Bath haven’t fulfilled potential in recent years so their desire and hunger after a very long pre season (!) will be evident. 

I also believe they have one of the most tactically astute coaches in the business in Anna Stembridge. 

All those factors together make for a very heady cocktail of success! It just remains to be seen if the right ingredients can be mixed at the right time, to see the ‘right’ results! 

#37 The anticipation is insane!

In the 17 year history of the UK Super League, has there ever been a more anticipated start to a season?!?! 

I doubt it. 

Social media is awash with excitement, team Whats App groups have a daily countdown and the elite players excitement levels must be off the scale! 

We must remember the huge effort, work & sacrifice to get us to this point. The teams behind the teams are just the most remarkable people. 

It’s such an achievement getting this league up and running in the midst of a global pandemic. We simply must ‘turn up and watch’ in numbers, in appreciation of the ‘behind the scenes’ inevitable blood, sweat and tears. 

For me, it’s also not JUST about the netball! 

For netball lovers across the UK it’s also about hope. 

Hope that grass roots level sport will soon return. 

Hope that youngsters will be inspired by strong, athletic role models and return to the sport they once loved or will come to love. 

Hope, that whilst many facets to life right now are shockingly shit, we can turn on our TV or lap top and ‘escape’ to whistle happy umpires, whoops of delight as long bombs drop and gasps of amazement following glory interceptions. 

(Joke about whistle happy umpires, honest!) 

BRING IT ON! 

The teams I am most looking forward to watching are probably pretty obvious. 

Manchester Thunder are defending champions and I think, the Super League team that has changed the least- says a lot about their faith in players, development pathway and strength in depth. 

Leeds Rhinos are the great unknowns. That’s excitement right there! Even without Maddie Brown, (ticket sales anyone! 😉) they have a really impressive mix of youth & experience and Aussie GS Donnell Wallam comes with rave reviews, despite not actually playing in Suncorp Super Netball.......yet! 

For me the strongest team on paper is Team Bath. Serena Guthrie. Layla Guscoth. Eboni Usoro- Brown. Need I say more!?! 

There are also individual players I am excited to see. 

Donnel Willam has already been mentioned. She was lauded as the stand out player from a ‘friendly’ Suncorp Super Netball pre season 2020 game, in which she played for a Perth ‘best of the rest’ team against eventual league finalists West Coast Fever. 

I am REALLY looking forward to her linking up with Rhea Dixon. I’m not sure why Dixon didn’t get the ‘rub of the green’ at Surrey Storm, but to me the GA has bags of potential. Her movement off the ball and link up play is sublime. Perhaps a change of scene and a boost in confidence is just what she needs. I really hope so! 

Ashleigh Dekker started all three matches for Pulse in the ill-fated 2020 season and as long as she’s recovered from the ankle injury that saw her limp off in a pre season friendly, I think she is definitely one to look out for this year. 

She is one of those Centres who will just not give in, stubborn, and that’s going to be great to play with, but very challenging to play against! She is going to learn HEAPS coming up against opponents like Guthrie, O’Hanlon and Clarke. 

Team Bath GS Kim Borger (Cummane) has a style all of her own and I absolutely love it! There is not another shooter in the UK Superleague like her, her footwork in that circle and agility is breathtaking at times! 

Of all the players I’ve missed watching she comes out on top and I’m looking forward to trying to emulate some of those swing balls and footwork patterns, when I can don the GS bib again, myself! 😉

Not long to wait, I’ll be sat on my sofa with a celebratory G&T waiting with baited breathe for the Celtic Dragons v Leeds Ehinos game on Friday. Who’s with me!?! 

Full fixtures for 2021 can be viewed here: https://www.netballsl.com/fixtures-results/ 

#36 1:1 Coaching

It will come as no surprise, due to the global pandemic, I have delivered far more 1:1 coaching in the last 10 months than I have, traditional, group / team sessions. 

I won’t lie, it’s a challenge and does not come naturally! 

After all netball is a team sport and before Covid-19 took hold I very rarely heard of coaches delivering 1:1 sessions and can count on one hand, the number of times I had delivered to a single person, myself. 

A good coach is always adaptable though and it’s not like I don’t have time to think practices through, find some creative solutions and make sure sessions I deliver are beneficial to each participant. 

As I’ve discussed before in my blogs, meeting expectations is crucial and whilst to most it’s fairly obvious, with just one player and coach match play isn’t going to happen. I’ve learnt it is worth having the discussion before we start though! 

Understandably, Covid-19 guidelines will also impact on what you can and can’t do! Not ball sharing during lockdown 1 was as silly as it was impractical but dear me, we did have a laugh! I’ve learnt having a giggle during lockdown 1:1s is just as important, if not more so in some cases, as the actual exercise! 

As much as 1:1 coaching at the beginning was a scary thought, going outside your comfort zone as a Coach is necessary for growth and learning. I have relished this opportunity. 

My creativity in coaching has improved tenfold. It was probably one of the weaker elements of my delivery and a challenge that has needed to be overcome for 1:1 sessions to be successful. This has and will have a positive impact on my confidence in this area! 

My technical knowledge has always been pretty sound as a Coach but 1:1s give your more opportunity to discuss technique and tactics, in particular. Communication around these areas, explaining and checking knowledge is always good to practice as a Coach. I have found with 1:1s you have the opportunity of being more specific and tailoring that explanation to the individual. 

What’s more a 1:1 participant seems as grateful for those nuggets of knowledge that they can take into match play (when it is safe to do so!) as they are for the run around and ‘escape’ from reality. 

Let’s be honest the majority of us grassroots netballers do not want to be involved in 1:1s right now - whether as a Coach or participant. What we all want to be doing is running round a court with our mates, high fiving & shaking hands without a thought. But, whilst 1:1s are all that are allowed we might as well make the most of it and I am certain I am going to be a better Coach for it! 

*As a responsible, qualified netball coach I take my Covid-19 responsibilities very seriously. All Covid-19 guidelines are adhered to and nothing is more important than participant and Coach safety. 

#35 Admire & Inspire

I feel I must apologise, writing positive blogs hasn’t been very forthcoming of late & I’ve been using the excuse (to myself at least) that there’s nothing much positive in netball to write about. I’ve been a bit short of inspiration! 

What a lie that is though! There is phenomenal inspiration right on my doorstep. Given it’s the season of goodwill and frankly, after the year we’ve had, there can never be enough kindness & netball love! 

So, behold my list of inspirational, local, netball stalwarts, who don’t just have an impact on me but do so much for the local netball community! 

💜 Angie Osborne

Yes, let’s start with the blindingly obvious! You can accuse me of nepotism, she is my mother after all. 

Few facts about the mother dearest that you may not know! She started her netball career at Centre 😂 She has been volunteering in netball for a MEGA 47 years 👵🏼. 

If she didn’t do what she does, Meon Netball Club, one of the oldest clubs in Hampshire, would have folded years ago! 

I could go on about the impact she’s had outside the club for local leagues, county netball, umpires, youngsters, walking netball - the list is endless. I don’t have enough superlatives though and if I kept going I really would be accused of nepotism! (Like I haven’t already! 😉🤷🏽‍♀️) 

The highest compliment I can pay her really is that her impact is immeasurable. We need more Angie Osborne’s in the netball world! 

💜 Judy Yoxall

I’ve only known Judy around 8/9 years but her involvement in netball extends well beyond that. She ‘retired’ to Portsmouth a few years ago and the local netball community should be extremely pleased she did! 

However if she ‘retired’ to our fab city, goodness knows what she did in netball before hand! 

Her involvement has no bounds, from grass roots to performance pathway, walking netball, back to netball and everything in between - coaching, umpiring, mentoring, administrating. You name a role in netball and I would bet money Judy has done it! 

Her enthusiasm and passion for our great sport is completely contagious. 

What impresses me so much about Judy is that even at her age (I know, but I’m not telling!) she still wants to learn and keep fresh. It’s really admirable.  She will do anything for anyone and has a heart that’s just full of netball giving! 

💜 Kimmi Grainger & Karen Rock

You can’t really name one without the other. They are Meon Netball Club,  and once upon a time, East Hampshire Netball Association, legends.

Their impact is sizeable in local netball but in very different ways. 

Kimmi, in my opinion, was a Coach using practices and strategies well ahead of her time. Before ‘Player-centred’ was first coined, she took time to get to know her players, whatever age or ability, found out what motivated them & used that to get the very best out of them. Tactically she saw things, that even now, nearly 20 years after she finished coaching me, I still can’t see! 

I would go as far to say that every single one of her players played their best netball under her. I certainly did. 

Karen, her bestie, was and still is at the other end of the spectrum. A huge support off of the netball court through umpiring and administration. During my first years at Meon there was not a penny out of place in the club accounts: she ruled with an iron rod! 

Her commitment to netball is just unprecedented. Hours and hours of volunteering and no doubt, countless sacrifices, made to support netball. Again the impact is immeasurable. She is one of a kind. 

💜 Sheonah Forbes

I came across Sheonah as a junior player and indeed, coached her as an U18 County player. What a long time ago that was ! I do remember what an incredible team player she was on and off the court. She was super supportive of her team mates, incredibly fair and as Captain of her County side a remarkable communicator between player and Coach. 

We’ve always keep in contact but I next had dealings with her when I first gained my role at England Netball. Sheonah was actually the first Netball Development Community Coach, employed, a very impressive appointment. Sheonah was a trailblazer & a huge source of encouragement and inspiration to her fellow colleagues. It was a sad day when she left the role. 

These days Sheonah can be found at the other end of the netball spectrum, coaching & looking after the future England Roses as Head Coach of the Academy programme.

I could not be more proud - not only of the dizzy heights she has scaled but because she has never lost that sense of fairness, trailblazing or enthusiasm. I am sure there are times when they’ve wavered, no path to the top is straightforward, but her resilience, perseverance and decision to stay grounded  has definitely stood her in very good stead. 

She’s the Gosport girl whose done very good! There will be more to come, of that I am certain. 

💜 Joan Horton

Joan is unfortunately no longer operating in netball circles and netball is certainly poorer for it, in my opinion. 

She had the most profound effect on me in my formative netball years. As a very young player with no junior teams around during that time, she used to let me join in with senior training and was so encouraging, despite me being more of a hindrance than a help! 

I will always remember Joan’s dignity in the face of adversity and her unflappable nature when all those were panicking around her! She had an all knowing wisdom which served so many, so well, off the court.

Although her netball commitments have been cut and I hear she is more into amateur dramatics these days (she’d have seen a lot of that on various netball committees over the years! 😉), her netball legacy lives on in those of us she coached and taught and in her procedures and admin work that we still work with today. Clubs, leagues, committees and even our National Governing Body are better off for her work and will continue to be, in many years to come. 

Joan, if you’re reading, get back into netball, we need you! 😘

💜 Julie Parkinson 

Well I started with a family member so I might as well finish with one! It will give those ‘gossip-mongers’ and ‘keyboard warriors’ something to do for a few hours! 🙄

My little sis definitely got the ‘better player’ title out of the two of us and that’s fine, because I’ve always told everyone that I’m the better Coach! 

It’s not true though and you only have to glance at her achievements with Jelly Netball - a club she started herself and continues to more or less run, singlehandedly, to see why! 

It’s not just about the success of the Jelly Netball teams, which is unsurpassed in local junior netball, or even the youngsters Julie has coached who have gone on to better things in netball. 

At the very heart of it is giving young players the very best first experience so they fall in love with our great game and never leave! 

It’s about more than just netball, it’s about all that surrounds it - the education, the opportunities, the confidence and independence. Julie isn’t just a netball coach, she is a role model, a teacher, a leader and an inspiration. 

That impact is hard to measure but the vast number of players who keep in contact years after they go to Uni - or even end up being Julie’s team mate later on, gives you a very good indicator of how well regarded she is by her players. There is no better compliment than that. 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all the Netball heroes and volunteers out there. There’s never a better time than now, to share your netball heroes and make sure they know they are appreciated! 

#34 Let’s just do better

I honestly feel like it’s two steps forward and one step back! 

For all the AMAZING things we have seen & witnessed in the netball community this year, December has shown we still have a long way to go before Netball can be taken seriously as a global sport. 

The errors, unfortunate as they are, come from different ends of the spectrum, in fact different sides of the world. But the impact should not be underestimated - especially when Suncorp SuperNetball franchises are up for renewal at the end of 2021, breakdancing has entered into the Olympics before our great sport and we continue to struggle for exposure & meaningful sponsorship. 

We’ll start simple with the poster for the upcoming Roses Legends Test against Jamaica. Have you spotted the mistake yet? It’s been the talk of Twitter! It is of course, the image of seriously talented, George Fisher taking a shot...........in a WD bib! 

I 

Moving on.......

I managed to get my children sat down and suitably ‘distracted’ on Saturday allowing me to watch, at least some, of the Team Bath v Mavericks pre season friendly in peace & quiet. The excitement, on social media, for the first live UK game since March, was palpable - so was the disappointment as the live stream was lacking one thing, sound! 

It’s not just at home that these mistakes are being made and expectations not met. 

I’ve woken up today to a furore from Australia as the much downloaded NetballLive App has seemingly increased its price by around 500% overnight! 

I’m a big fan of the App, having paid £13.99 for a years pass for the last few years. It’s great value for money not just matches from the SSN but Tests and Constellation Cup matches too. The response has not been positive & it will be interesting what the take up is with the annual subscription no longer available. 

Also Down Under we’ve seen sanctions against Perth-based West Coast Fever as they have been found ‘cheating’ the salary cap and have now been deducted nine points before the 2021 season starts! https://supernetball.com.au/news/west-coast-fever-sanctioned-salary-cap-breach 

Diamonds legend Sharni Layton makes the point that maybe we shouldn’t have a salary cap, particularly if two teams this year have been found breaking it. Maybe a salary cap is, in part, holding back our sport? 

Sigh. 

My own frustration centres on the ease that some of these errors can be rectified or apologised for. The Roses Legends poster is a great example. 

Firstly, why isn’t there a process where marketing and promotional material is double or triple checked before publication? I come from a marketing background and it’s surely commonplace in any organisation wanting to succeed? And even if it did slip through those safety nets - human error is a fact of life, why hasn’t there been a quick website update or social media post along the lines of 

‘Whoops, we’re really sorry an error has obviously been made! Thanks to all those who have pointed it out, here’s the rectified image, please share this in future!’ 

Surely the netball family, after every thing we’ve done this year, deserve a bit of honesty? I think they’d probably appreciate it too. 

So, we come to the recent Goalden Globes, the EN ‘Oscars’ celebrating all that are volunteers. 

I’ll be honest, I was in two minds including this in today’s blog but conversations with more than one volunteer, who have been really disappointed, have persuaded me to include the following: 

If there is one year where we should be really pushing the boat out to thank our volunteers, it’s 2020. There are just not enough adjectives and I am not a good enough blogger to do them justice. 

The fact that the awards even took place, albeit online, is remarkable and huge plaudits to those who got it done. It’s an incredible feat. 

It was a huge opportunity to go above and beyond for volunteers just as they have gone above and beyond for netball. 

In many ways the awards did tick many ‘well done’ and ‘thank you’  boxes. There were even surprise gift boxes delivered in the day’s leading up to and following the presentation. I don’t think that’s ever been done before and was certainly appreciated by those who received them. 

When you organise something so huge and so important though it has to all be right, there is no room for error or misinterpretation. 

Criticisms include the the difference in nominations / shortlisting for the #RiseAgain Hero award compared to other categories. Also that in previous years all Long Service nominees have been acknowledged, this year we had winners. 

For me, these criticisms are all about managing expectations. 

There are also those nominated who have still not received their gift at the time of writing - as much as it’s a lovely gesture, it’s not fair if only some people are receiving them. 

My own opinion, having sat through all of the live YouTube broadcast was that for much of it we were really celebrating the efforts and achievements of the netball community. There were some fab, inspiring stories and really deserving recipients. 

There was also too much time, in my opinion, spent rewarding people for doing their jobs. I’m not saying that they haven’t done their jobs well but I thought the whole point of Goalden Globes was to celebrate volunteers. 

For me, the song & dance made of a said few took the shine off the majority who really deserved to be made a fuss of. 

Maybe December has just been a bad month. Maybe 2020 has just made me, and others, more cynical and we need to turn our frowns upside down! 

I do think that if any volunteer, even if it’s only one, is left disappointed after an awards ceremony that is meant to thank & celebrate volunteering, that is one too many. 

I also think that netball only has so many opportunities to break down that glass ceiling & fulfil the potential we have been banging on about for years. We’ve made great, great strides but we have to stop tripping ourselves up to realise and achieve what we are really capable of. 

#33 Pipe Dreams

The Southsea seafront building that used to house the museum of the National Royal Marines has been sold today. https://www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/defence/portsmouths-old-royal-marines-museum-become-luxury-five-star-hotel-after-site-sold-3047095 

You may wonder what on earth that has to do with netball, well I’ll tell you. I was going to win Euromillions, buy it and base a fabulous netball centre there! 

Yes, really! 

My pipe dream is the latest in a long list of sites I have earmarked for my netball development home! It started in 1994 when the National Lottery was launched - I wasn’t even old enough to play! 

Mum and I used to walk to netball training past an old derelict building that would have been the perfect place for a sports hall and at least 4 outside courts. We’d have a gym and a meeting room and an office. Every week we used to make plans for it as we walked past! 

The building stayed derelict for a long time but in the last few years has been turned into a school, ironically with a lovely outdoor multi use facility but no netball lines! 🙄

The next facility in Portsmouth that became ‘available’ was HMP Kingston. A prison that had been mothballed and, importantly, up for sale! 😉

I had intimate knowledge of the site as I had worked there, for a brief time, in the early 2000s. It even had a full sized football pitch within the vast walls! There was already an old style gymnasium / sports hall and gym on site,  so it would have only taken a bit of remodelling! 

I had even researched historic planning permission, as the prison was around 100 years old. The only part of the site that had to remain for a new purpose, was the gate house. It would have made a very original entrance to a netball centre! 

That site was inevitably sold for housing and the diggers and construction vehicles moved in probably a year ago now. Not much progress has been made, mind you! 

So, my attention turned to the Royal Marines Museum which has a beautiful view across the Solent and vast grounds for outside courts and car parking! There may have even been room for a dome to ensure netball all year round! 

Alas, it was not meant to be on this occasion and it’s actually been sold to hoteliers. I look forward to visiting it as a 5 star hotel! 

So, on to my next search for the dream netball centre in Portsmouth! No stone will go unturned although I do wonder if a win on the lotto will be enough these days!